Illegal Technology Leaks of Korean Developmental Stem Cells in Japan

• Biostar Stem Cell Research Institute’s documents submitted to Japan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare have been illegally leaked to be embezzled for submitting an application of stem cell therapy plan.
• Caught on the final stage of examination, failed to receive an approval.
  Challenge in bringing back the technical data

Biostar Stem Cell Research Institute co-run by R Bio and Nature Cell announced on the 21^st that there had been an illegal technology leak in Japan of stem cells developed in Korea.

The leaked documents includes classified information with details on autologous adipose cell derived stem cell extracts, culturing procedures, and quality control methods, and they have been submitted with an application for Japan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare’s approval.  A Japanese company called J-StemCell deceived the administration scrivener in charge of the documents in order to use it to gain approval.  They submitted Biostar SCRI’s classified data to a judging committee for specific recognition of regenerative medicines.  Their crime was revealed during the process of notifying R-Japan, Biostar’s Japanese affiliate, for technical supplements.

R Bio and R Japan informed the committee about it and sent official documents to 27 other committees in Japan. Furthermore, Biostar is planning to sue the head of J-StemCell along with the main employees and the director and manager of Cell Clinic in both Korea and Japan.

Dr. Jeong-Chan Ra, the CTO of SCRI, visited Japan in a hurry to settle the situation. “A crime that should not have occurred happened.  This illegally leaked data are what our researchers have been working on for the past 10 years, and it’s very deplorable that they did such thing for their own greed for money.  They have not stolen 100% of our know-hows, but about 40% has been leaked.  We’ve already experienced a similar situation through the company’s past loan shark and investigation is still in process, so we will strongly confront to keep the rest of our technologies confidential,” said Dr. Ra.

In the midst of the rise of attempts to gain approval on stem cell regenerative medicines due to Regenerative Medicines Promotion Acts put into effect, the importance of confidentiality of stem cell technologies is stressed again in order to prevent such crimes.

Furthermore, because such event has occurred due to receiving an approval and proceeding stem cell treatment in Japan, for it wasn’t approved in Korea for legal and institutional barriers reasons, it is now more urgent for the need of our government’s proactive policy of practical support for advanced bio-technology.